Matt Ox

Philadelphia-based rapper Matt Ox burst onto the scene at age 12. He first absorbed rap through repeated listens to Kendrick Lamar and Eminem at four, then began composing his own rhymes by five and kept sharpening them through his childhood years. Interviews later revealed that those earliest verses overflowed with profanity, yet Ox deliberately reduced the swearing once he began recording for an audience, concerned that heavy explicit content might hinder broader commercial appeal. In May 2017 he issued the single “Overwhelming,” a two-minute Auto-Tuned trap cut produced by Oogie Mane. Its video captured the young Ox dancing and flexing through Philadelphia neighborhoods and quickly amassed millions of views. Additional tracks and videos followed, and within months Ox secured a Warner Bros. deal while reportedly working on new material with Lil Yachty, Lil Pump, and PnB Rock.